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Wednesday, May 5, 2010

Well Thought Out Yet Completely Random Penguin Card of the Week

One of my favorite cards and favorite Pens of the early 90s, Mark Recchi's Upper Deck rookie from 1990-91 (although he started his NHL career in 1988). This card is epic in so many ways. It was the first hockey card that I remember buying on my own and I still have it. I have quite a few of these in fact. I remember that it cost me $.75 back then and I picked it up at a card show in the Ramada Inn in Somerset, PA. I thought it was a bargain because some how I knew that he was going to be a Penguin for a long time.

Recchi helped win the Cup for the Pens in 90-91 but was traded the following year to Philly for Kjell Samuelsson, Rich Tocchet, and Ken Wregget. Not a bad trade considering each of them played a part in the Cup win the following season. I believe Recchi still holds the Philly single season point record to this day and probably will for a long time.

Fast forward two decades...and I was right about one thing. He would be playing for a long time. Just not with the Penguins. Here we are in the midst of the 2010 Stanley Cup playoffs and Mark is 42 years old. Done? Washed up? Career over? Heck no!! Although this may be his last season, the Recchin' Ball is currently leading his Boston Bruins in round 2 against the Philadelphia Flyers. Here's hoping we can see a few more years out of him.

So why did I like this card so much? I always liked how the colors of the border matched so well with the uniforms. I guess it also always made me wonder: Why is he sitting on the ice? Isn't it cold down there? Did he just get checked and his helmet almost got knocked off? It's funny how it looks like the word "Ow" is coming out of his mouth because of the dasher board in the background. Kind of like the skit from the Electric Company. What's he doing down there? Checking his stick to see if it is ok? He looks like a little kid sitting on the floor of his playroom admiring one of his toys.